Energy: Developing a Sustainable Future - page 1
Keywords: Energy- Sustainable energy-crude oil -
By wali on 11/12/2008
Level: Foundation Degree
Page Number: 1 of 5 pages: 1 2 3 4 5
Energy: Developing a Sustainable Future
The last century's reliance on fossil fuels has left the world facing global warming, geo-political crisis around the world, and a dwindling supply of a finite resource. The large developing industrialized societies in China and India have accelerated the problem and have dictated that a changeover from crude oil happens sooner rather than later. There is little debate on the issue of whether the world needs to move towards more sustainable or renewable sources of energy. The debate surrounds the types of fuels that will be used in the future, the cost of their development, and the plan for adoption of new technologies. Many of these technologies and sources of energy have already experienced a significant amount of research and acceptance. The migration from fossil fuels will involve multiple sources, local generation, and a variety of new technologies to power the world into the 21st century.
The energy crisis is not a national problem, but is a challenge facing every nation in the world. While eighty percent of the world's energy needs comes from fossil based fuels, the technologies to sustain the current level of use, reduce the CO2 emissions, and develop cleaner coal are still in their infancy and may eventually prove to be impractical (Evans 2007, p.6). In addition, the existence of large concentrated oil supplies has created an unstable political situation that keeps the world's supply of energy at risk. Nuclear generated electricity has received some renewed interest in recent years based on improved safety records, but the problem of the safe disposal of nuclear waste is yet to be solved. Our current transportation systems may require substantial modification to run on the fuels of the future. The challenge that faces the world is to move away from the current uses of oil and utilize locally generated energy based on local renewable resources.
Solar energy is at the top of the list as an abundant source of sustainable energy. It is available almost everywhere in the world and can be harvested on a local level. Solar power can be used in its direct form as heat and light as well as easily converted to electricity through the use of photovoltaic cells. Solar energy requires relatively little advanced technology or engineering to harness its benefits. Though solar energy is widely distributed throughout the world, it is a low density energy and requires the collection of the sun's
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